BlackBerry 9800 Slider in New, Better Photos

Canadian mobile phone maker Research In Motion was long rumored to be working on the handset with a sliding design, and photos, specs and other info on the device emerged not too long ago, almost confirming its existence. The said phone, reportedly dubbed BlackBerry 9800, has just emerged in a new series of photos, enabling enthusiasts to take a closer look at it, since they are of a better quality than the previously leaked ones.

The new photos with the BlackBerry 9800 slider were brought to the web by the guys over at berrytimes.cn, showing a little more on the phone than before, and suggesting that the official release date might not be too far in the future. Unfortunately, no new info on the handset came along, and the previously leaked specs are all that we have for the time being. A quick look at the phone's touchscreen display, its sliding QWERTY, various external ports and the SIM and microSD card slots should make enthusiasts rejoice.

In related news, we learn that the BlackBerry 9800 slider is only one of the handset RIM is set to bring to the market in the near future. A BlackBerry Curve 9300 also emerged in a series of photos (removed in the meantime), which were accompanied by some leaked info on the handset. The phone is reportedly expected to land on the market as the successor of the 8500 series, and it sports rubberized back and side convenience keys similar to the best selling Curve line.

When it comes to the phone's specifications list, we can count 256 MB of RAM, Wi-Fi (b/g/n) connectivity options, a display that boasts a 320 x 240 pixel resolution, an optical trackpad, as well as the BlackBerry OS 5 platform. The handset is expected to arrive on the market both in GSM and CDMA flavors, yet no details on when it might arrive on shelves have emerged so far. However, we should mention that Verizon is rumored to plan adding it to its offering before this year's end. More info on the device can be found here.